Scribe: Artist of the Written Word

John Stevens264pp 2013Hardcover with dust jacket. Instructional. Full color throughout.
Absolutely excellent examples of calligraphy throughout. Many instructional gems on training to be a better calligrapher.Good for: … Learning how a great calligrapher thinks … Gaining many insights into becoming a better calligrapher … Learning of those design and craft elements that are of particular interest to serious calligraphers … Jaw-dropping gallery inspiration. RECOMMENDED.

Painting For Calligraphers

Marie Angel128pp 1984Hardcover with dust jacket. Instructional. Full color.
Many examples of Marie’s fine, small animal paintings.Good for: … If you want to paint miniatures, this is a terrific companion guide on how to lay in the colors. She tells you what kinds of design elements to think of for plants, animals, color, pigments, and more.

Script in the Copperplate Style

Dr. Joseph M. Vitolo90pp Downloaded from website at iampeth.com. Instructional.
Every letter covered in detail. A few pages include spot color.Good for: … Painstaking, detailed instruction for the execution of every letter in the Copperplate script … Free!

New Calligraphic Ornaments & Flourishes

Arthur Baker78pp 1981 Paperback. Dover Publication. B&W.
Full of examples, though very few I found useful.Good for: … When you want broad-edge pen ideas for calligraphic ornaments, such as at the top or bottom of sections, or borders.

Learning Copperplate/Spencerian Script

Chancery Cursive Stroke by Stroke

Arthur Baker63pp 1982 Softcover. Staple bound. Instructional.
Includes line drawings of the hand and pen to show his pen manipulations in the forming of each letter. One letter per page. Very nice hand.Good for: … Learning how to make this handsome version of italic script. … Want to see good example of pen manipulation.

Calligraphy Made Easy

Margaret Shepherd112pp Softcover. B&W.
I estimate there are 150 styles in this book. Something for everyone. Pen nib ladders and pen angle shown for each. Novelty alphabets throughout. I would use very few for serious work.Good for: … Having a resource of styles handy, especially quirky or novelty styles.

The Mystic Art of Written Forms: An Illustrated Handbook For Lettering

Friedrich Neugebauer142pp 1979Hardback, with dust jacket. Mostly B&W; a few pages in color. Instructional.
Many comments on letterforms and their construction with plenty of illustrations.Good for: … Beginners … Gallery Inspiration.

The Encyclopedia of Calligraphy Techniques

Janet Mehigan & Mary Noble169pp Hardback. Dust jacket. Techniques. Full color.
Beautifully illustrated volume with gorgeous and inspirational artwork in the gallery. Chapters cover tools and materials, basic penmanship, alphabets, and illumination. The gallery has some of the most stunning work among all my other books.Good for: … Learning about illuminated letters … Learn a variety of ways of gilding … Basic alphabets … Jaw-dropping gallery inspiration. RECOMMENDED.

The Calligrapher’s Handbook

Quill Publishing64 pp Hardback. Dust jacket. B&W and some color.
A nice overview of the art of calligraphy. Principles. Lots of text to explain the different aspects of calligraphy.Good for: … Like the Speedball Textbook, but more explanatory text … For newcomers.

Nature Illuminated: Flora and Fauna from the Court of the Emperor Rudolf II

The Psalms of David

James S. Free mantle342pp Hardback with dust cover. Full color. Religious/Christianity.
The artist lavishly illustrated all 150 psalms from the Bible for his wife.Good for: … Inspiration for text and layout … Religious contemplation.

Little Marks Earn Big Bucks

Abraham Lincoln78pp 1984 Softcover. B&W. Business.
Pointers on charging, certificates, business cards, invitations, menus, birth certificates, work agreements, posters, and tips on supplies. “A practical guide to earn extra cash using calligraphy.”Good for: … General advice on making a wide variety of projects you’d expect to provide as a business, but little on actual pricing.

Calligraphy: Lettering and Design

Eugene Metcalf64pp 1986 Softcover. B&W and color.
A Walter Foster Publication. Overview. Project examples. Many ways of applying calligraphy.Good for: … A supplement to the Speedball Textbook if you are doing a wide variety of practical work like logos, postcards, posters, etc.

Doorposts

Timothy R. BottsNo folios. about 120pp 1986 Hardcover with dust cover and plastic cover. Full color. Religious/Christian.
Sixty calligraphic renderings of Bible passages, with notes by Botts. He endeavors to design his work to reflect the meaning or feeling behind the verses.Good for: … Gallery inspiration … Christian contemplation.

Bound for Glory

Timothy R. Botts, with reflections by Patricia Raybon128pp 2011 Hardcover. Full color. Religious/Christian.
Here, the author applies his expressive calligraphy to the African American spirituals. The song lyrics are included, Bible verses, and brief meditation by Patricia. Although I personally don’t think it’s his best work, this carefully-designed fifth volume by Botts gives me an appreciation for his large body of work. He has found his calling and has consistently applied his skills to his aim: to glorify God and His words.Good for: … Gallery inspiration … Christian contemplation. …

The Art of the Saint John’s Bible

Susan Sink126pp Softcover. Full color illustrations among the text. Religious/Christian.
Billed as “A reader’s Guide to Pentateuch, Psalms, Gospels, and Acts.” Explains the significance of the art as it relates to the text, and gives us some history of illuminated Bibles, and insights into the artists of the Saint John’s Bible.Good for: … Viewing some of the art from the book at a lower price … For those who would meditate on Bible truths through artist inspiration (but I prefer the Bible text myself).

Illuminating the Word: The Making of The Saint John’s Bible

Christopher Calderhead216pp 2005 Hardback. Dust cover. Full color illustrations. Religious/Christian.
Many aspects of this project are thoroughly covered here. (I marked this as “Religious/Christian” because of the content of the Saint John’s Bible, not the content of this work.)Good for: … Learning about the people and practices behind the making of the calligraphic works of this book … Viewing the artwork created for the Bible. RECOMMENDED.

Calligraphy Today

Heather Child112pp 1963 Hardback. Dust cover. Retrospective. B&W.
Many examples of calligraphy from the early 1960’s.Good for: .. Gallery inspiration, though not as good when you’ve already seen as wide a variety as I have.

Digital Calligraphy

George Thomson160pp Softcover. Instructional. Color illustrations.
How to use the computer to create lettering designs.Good for: … Those who want to know how to use the computer in the creation or manipulation of calligraphic artwork.

The Art of Calligraphy: A practical guide

Italic Handwriting

Tom Gourdie96pp 1955 Softcover. B&W. Instructional.Good for: … Learning the Italic handwriting (connected letters) style of writing. If your handwriting is terrible, you’d do us all a favor by following this book!

Writing & Illuminating & Lettering

Edward Johnson439pp 1977 Softcover. B&W. Glossy pages of photographic plates. Spot color used sparingly. Instructional/Historical.
Written by the man who is single-handedly responsible for the revival of calligraphy in our day.Good for: … Reading Edward’s own historic handbook of calligraphy, and reading the most authoritative work for his time.

The Hunt/Speedball Calligraphy Workbook: An Italic workbook

Calligraphy Masterclass

Edited by Peter Halliday127pp 1990 Hardback. Full-color illustrations.
15 international calligraphers demonstrate their work processes, following a design to the end, explaining the challenges and solutions they encountered along the way.Good for: … Reading about the thought processes of experienced designers as they progressed through a work.

Spiritual Calligraphy

Steve Hustling36pp 2013 Softcover. Full color. Religious/Christian.
A devotional featuring one devotional and calligraphic treatment per chapter in the Gospel of Mark, 16 total works. Features photos of calligraphy tools and notes to inform the non-calligrapher. Colophon pages describe how each work was created, including tools, media, and hand used.Good for: … Gallery inspiration … Christian contemplation.

About Steve Husting

Steve Husting is a mild webmaster by day and fearless writer by night. He is deaf, loves making calligraphy, hiking, terrific movies, and making the Bible's message clear to his readers. His devotionals are regularly published in Daily Devotionals for the Deaf, and his latest apps are sold in the iTunes App Store. His self-published Christian and calligraphy books are on lulu.com/spotlight/stevehusting

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Spiritual Calligraphy book

See God’s Word glorified in these 16 passages from the Gospel of Mark, each one beautifully illustrated with stunning calligraphy paired with an insightful meditation. Full color throughout. Also includes information and photos about the calligrapher’s tools used throughout the book.
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